2 days ago
Air India crash survivor's family can't fly to his bedside as flights cancelled
Wounded Vishwash Kumar Ramesh was able to walk free from the wreckage of flight AI171 in Ahmedabad after his section of the aircraft survived relatively unscathed
The sole survivor of the Air India tragedy had planned to celebrate his arrival in the UK with a family barbecue. Vishwash Kumar Ramesh, from London, miraculously escaped the horror crash in Ahmedabad, western India, on Thursday with his life intact.
The 40-year-old has told how he walked from the plane after the middle section of the aircraft - where he was seated in seat 11A - was spared from the worst of the impact after the plane crashed down in the city shortly after takeoff, killing 241 passengers and crew and leaving his brother, Ajay Kumar Ramesh, missing.
Missing Ajay was meant to return to the UK alongside Vishwash, with his cousin saying Brit-bound family members were looking forward to welcoming them.
Hiren Kantilal, 19, told the Mirror they had a "party" planned in Leicester to welcome them, with "many" family members set to join a barbecue.
But, while they are happy Vishwash has survived, the family has decided not to celebrate, with no news on Ajay more that 24 hours after the crash.
He said: 'We had planned a party here in Leicester to welcome them, we were going to have a barbecue and many family would be here. Now when he arrives back in the UK there will be no celebration.
"We're happy that Vishwash survived but unhappy that his brother is still missing. It's been 24 hours with no news. We are all heartbroken."
With the celebration now cancelled, Vishwash's family continue to gather outside an address in Leicester, all scrambling to book flights to be by his bedside.
Hiren added: 'We're trying to book 14 flights to India. We had flights booked with Air India but had a call at 6am this morning to say it had been cancelled.'
Air India has cancelled more than a dozen planned flights this morning while continuing to pick up the pieces from Thursday's incident, with Israel's surprise raid on Iran forcing officials to rapidly change plans.
The airline said in a statement earlier today that it regretted "the inconvenience", but that its hand was forced by the closure of Iranian airspace.
An air India spokesperson said: "We regret the inconvenience caused to our passengers due to this unforeseen disruption and are making every effort to minimize it, including providing accommodation for passengers.
"Refunds on cancellation or complimentary rescheduling is also being offered to guests who opt for it. Alternative arrangements are being made to fly passengers to their destinations."
